Air India sends passengers on bus from Jaipur to Delhi after Paris flight diverted

Air India passengers from Paris were forced to commute by bus after their flight was diverted to Jaipur on Monday morning. More than a dozen flights have been diverted this week as Delhi battles poor weather conditions and severe air pollution.

“Shameful and pathetic management from Air India today as flight AI2022 from CDG-DEL diverted to JAI. Pax stranded at JAI asked to spend 5 hours inside the aircraft and then to take a bus from JAI to DEL. My wife and two months old is suffering and I am helpless,” wrote one X user.

light tracking data indicates that the Delhi-bound flight had taken off from the Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris at 10:00 pm on November 17. It was slated to land in the national capital at 10:35 am the next day. The flight was however diverted to Jaipur as Delhi battled poor visibility due to air pollution and bad weather conditions.

Delhi and its surrounding areas were shrouded in dense fog on Monday — amplified by bad weather conditions and alarmingly high pollution levels. The India Meteorological Department had also issued an orange alert due to the foggy conditions. The deviations were required as only CAT III trained pilots are allowed to take off or land planes at very low visibility conditions.

"Poor visibility in Delhi and some parts of Northern India are affecting flight operations to and from Delhi today. Guests are advised to start early for the airport, as slow traffic may delay your movement," Air India posted on Monday afternoon.

Delhi became the second-most polluted city in the country on Sunday evening with an AQI of 457 by 7:00 pm. The situation has continued to worsen — with the AQI hitting 491 at 2:00 pm on Monday.

Both SpiceJet and IndiGo issued travel advisories via social media on Monday morning as several flights were diverted to nearby cities and several routes faced delay.

(With inputs from agencies)